Royals compete at U of M

Published January 9, 2013 at 2:38 pm

<

>

The Watertown-Mayer/Waconia/Delano/Holy Family swimming and diving team finished in 11th place in their 16-team division last Saturday at the Maroon and Gold Invite hosted by Minneapolis South at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center.

In all, 57 teams competed at the meet, split into four divisions. In the Royals’ Bronze Division, Sartell St. Stephen finished in first place with 490 points, beating out Brainerd, which took second with 468 points. The Royals finished 11th with 165 points.

Leading the way individually for the Royals was Zach Holman, who had two top-four finishes in events that featured nearly 50 swimmers. In the 50-yard freestyle, Holman finished third with a time of 22.92 seconds, and in the 100-yard freestyle, he took fourth in a time of 51.04 seconds.

Also with a top-five individual finish for the Royals was diver Tristan Gens. Gens finished in fifth place with 168.8 points.

The Royals’ 200-yard freestyle relay team also enjoyed a strong performance, finishing in fourth place with a time of 1:35.92. That squad consisted of Kurt Gilbertson, Tylor Franklin, Shawn Wasser and Holman. The Royals’ 400-yard freestyle relay finished in 10th place with a time of 3:40.17, and consisted of Wasser, Franklin, Holman and Jack Dalluge.

A number of individuals also scored points for the Royals with strong performances at the meet. Gilbertson finished in 15th place in two events — the 50-yard freestyle and the 100-yard breaststroke. In the 50 Free, he finished with a time of 24.31 seconds, and he had a time of 1:11.52 in the 100 Breaststroke.

Wasser and Dalluge both had 14th place finishes. Wasser was 14th in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 2:01.8, and Dalluge was 14th in the 200-yard Individual Medley with a time of 2:19.10.

Franklin and Ben DeSutter both had 16th-place finishes. DeSutter was 16th in the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 1:04.59, and Franklin was 16th in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 55.08 seconds.

The Royals were also in action on Tuesday, Jan. 8, when they traveled to take on Buffalo in a dual meet. The Royals will return to action on Thursday, Jan. 10, when they host a Wright County Conference dual against Litchfield at 6 p.m., and will then host their own invitational on Saturday, Jan. 12, beginning at 1 p.m. Teams scheduled to compete at that meet include Orono, Buffalo and Eagan.